Imagine yourself sitting here, inside a class-leading recording studio which cost over $300 ft2 to construct. Now, imagine that you are producing that session... as a student. Photo by GROOVE U Advisory Panel member Josh Howey.

Console Desk

The custom, solid hardwood desk glides back and forth along a radius so the engineer can move the gear around him/her while remaining in the monitoring "sweet spot." Photo by GROOVE U Advisory Panel member Josh Howey.

Studio Monitors

The entire building was built around these Genelec speakers, which cost $7,500-$10,000... each. Lasers were used to precisely position each of the 10 speakers. Photo by GROOVE U Advisory Panel member Josh Howey.

Studio Glass

Ten layers of acoustic drywall with acoustic caulking provide sound isolation between the Control Rooms and the Studio Proper. Two 1" pieces of glass plus two .75" pieces of glass place 3.5" of glass between acoustic spaces. Photo by GROOVE U Advisory Panel member Josh Howey.

Backboxes

Installed at a cost of over $120,000, professional grade Mogami cabling stretches over 5 miles throughout the facility. Photo by GROOVE U Advisory Panel member Josh Howey.

Studio Proper

The 8" poured concrete floor in the Studio Proper is supported by over 100 masonry isolators which sit atop an additional 6" of poured concrete foundation. Photo by GROOVE U Advisory Panel member Josh Howey.

The differing lengths of copper tubing contained in the custom 17 ton stone wall function both as a trap for bass frequencies and as an air return for the nearly silent HVAC system. Photo by GROOVE U Advisory Panel member Josh Howey.

Electrical Power

The white outlets provide facility-wide "regular" electrical power, while the orange ones provide conditioned power to just audio equipment through a $12,000 Cutler/Hammer transformer. Photo by GROOVE U Advisory Panel member Josh Howey.

Isolation Booths

Each Control Room has its own attached Isolation Booth, each of which sits atop their own foundations and isolators. In total, there are five separate building foundations. Photo by GROOVE U Advisory Panel member Josh Howey.

Design Details

The facility draws heavily on the use of natural materials such as woods and stone to create an organic atmosphere comfortable for long hours of use.

The departure point for the design stems from a philosophical position that studio space should fuel creativity and not be derived solely from technical dogma and equipment requirements. As such the design emphasis is placed upon the comfort of the user balanced with, and not subservient to, the technological integration."

Martin PilchnerDirectorPilchner -Schoustal

Photo by GROOVE U Advisory Panel member Josh Howey.

Machine Room

Special decoupling plenum routes all the low voltage wiring back to the machine room, which contains all the data devices & connections. There are zero physical room couplings between acoustic spaces. Photo by GROOVE U Advisory Panel member Josh Howey.

Student Lounge

Our students spend a lot of time on campus, that's why it's important to have comfortable spaces to both study and relax. The Student Lounge contains a kitchen, TV, video gaming systems, comfortable lounge seating, and outdoor patios. Photo by GROOVE U Advisory Panel member Josh Howey.